Typical situation: I walked into Anthropologie yesterday and saw something for the “love” list. This week’s obsession? Felted soap. Handmade in the USA by Fiat Luxe, these adorable little soaps double as sudsy (and anti-fungal!) washcloths that can be reused when the original scented soap has magically disappeared. Made with no synthetic, chemical, nor animal ingredients, they may be the perfect thing for that weary post-holiday shopper: you! You can find Fiat Luxe Felted Soap for $14 at Anthropologie, Beautyhabit, or Amazon.com. Or if you prefer to let your wallet sleep in, see simple soap felting DIY instructions here and here. — Sarah C.

When I was a child, I took an origami class and emerged from it with nothing but paper cuts. I thought my paper crafting days were over until I spotted these bright cardboard critters sitting pretty at a local letterpress shop. Created by artist Junzo Terada, Magical Menagerie, $24.95 from Chronicle Books, is book of 20 punch-out animal sculptures that are constructed by simply fitting the matching slotted pieces together — no scissors, glue, or ornate folding required. The colorful creatures look great on display, and make for a fun activity or unconventional card. — Sarah C.

What is Re-Energized by Design, you ask? Well, it is an awesome web series that Shelterrific is excited to be participating in — produced by Puget Sound Energy, it’s all about incorporating energy efficiency into home design. The challenge is this: six teams of homeowners are paired with design coaches and together they compete to re-design 5 rooms with a focus on saving energy with a small budget. Cameras are documenting each leg of the challenge, and with every room one team gets the boot! The prizes are great: a home full of new LED and CFL lightbulbs from GE, a full suite of kitchen and laundry appliances from Frigidaire, and $5000.

I was fortunate to be paired with the Bedford family, who are just delightful. Kristen and her husband Slade have a great contemporary house, fun design aesthetic, and are really willing to completely put themselves into every challenge. This experience for me has literally been re-energizing to me as well, ending a year-long creative rut and getting me back into blogging and crafting and having fun again. I can’t wait to share what we’ve created together.

But as of today, I won’t have to wait much longer, as the first webisode is available at 6am PST at the Re-Energized By Design site — this week’s is an introduction to all the contestants. And stay tuned each week as we reveal another webisode. Also be sure to go to the Re-Energized page on Facebook, where you can enter to win a new Frigidaire appliance like those featured in the challenge!

After reading through all of your amazing comments and suggestions on my post about wanting to hang a pot rack, I decided I should probably consult the guy actually in charge of building it for me. It turns out my boyfriend is pretty creative and quite the handyman. I came home from work one day to find he had devised a plan for building me my very own pot rack. Less than $20 and 30 minutes later I had a great place to hang my new pots. It was as simple as drilling a few pilot holes, screwing in some eye-hooks, hanging a couple of carabiners and sawing off the handle of a broomstick. Oh, and the pretty metal hooks—they’re actually shower curtain hooks! I think it looks rather sleek…in an industrial sort of way. Let me know if you want more detailed instructions and I’ll get the handyman himself to write some up. —Erica P.

Iâ€™d been scouring Craigslist for a small desk for my daughterâ€™s bedroom re-do, but after three months of no-go and a birthday deadline fast approaching, I changed my plans last garbage day. With my neighborâ€™s blessing, I snagged her chair from the curb. It took about two hours to scrub and vacuum it clean. Then I repaired the loose wicker on the front legs, gave it a coat of white primer, and finished with two cans of Krylon Watermelon. (Still not sure about the monogram I taped off in the diamond pattern on the back of the chair — I was going for funky but think now it might be fussy. Thoughts?) Click to read the rest — and see the chair as it looked before Sarah’s magic!(more…)

I have a ton of old CDs that are not being used due to the convienience of mp3 players. I cannot part with them so they just collect dust in those CD books, taking up space. I love music and was thinking it would be interesting to display the ones that have colorful artwork. I have seplaceed the Internet to see if anyone has crafted such a thing, but only come up with CD storage frames. Anyone have any idea how to frame cds in a collage without having to ruin them with glue?

Hmm…Well, Chana, we actually like the storage frames at Billboard CD Frame — is it not having a case that’s the problem, or are you simply looking for a more 2D solution? You could try attaching the case art to a magnetic board like this one, or slipping them into a ribboned bulletin board. You could also try adapting this Curbly DIY on hanging photos using a wire (photo here). But maybe you want a more finished, framed look. Readers, any suggestions?

About Shelterrific

This is site dedicated not to homemaking, but to home loving: Decorating, cooking, entertaining, organizing, gardening and making the most out of the places we call home. Shelterrific began in 2006 ... More

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